Mentalization Based Therapy

Brief Introduction of Mentalizing

Mentalizing is a form of imaginative mental activity about others or oneself, namely, perceiving and interpreting human behavior in terms of intentional mental states (e.g. needs, desires, feelings, beliefs, goals, purposes, and reasons).

Mentalizing is a fundamental psychological process, it interfaces with all major mental disorders.This means that mentalizing techniques may have the potential to improve well-being across a range of disorders, including depression, eating disorders, addiction, and even the less severe forms of antisocial personality disorder. These insights are tremendously useful for any practitioner of psychotherapy, as well as students in the field. Exhaustive in its coverage of the nature, practice, and exciting potential of this relatively new approach, Handbook of Mentalizing in Mental Health Practice is destined to become a classic in the literature of psychotherapy.

In the book review of “Handbook of Mentalizing in Mental Health Practice”

Mentalizing-based Treatment

Mentalization-based treatment (MBT) is an innovative form of psychodynamic psychotherapy, developed and manualised by Peter Fonagy and Anthony Bateman. MBT has been designed for individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD), who suffer from disorganised attachment and allegedly failed to develop a mentalizationcapacity within the context of an attachment relationship. Fonagy and Bateman claim mentalization is the process by which we implicitly and explicitly interpret the actions of oneself and others as meaningful on the basis of intentional mental states. The object of treatment is that BPD patients increase mentalization capacity which should improve affect regulation and interpersonal relationships.

At present, mentalizing-based treatment has become one of the mainstream psychotherapy in Europe and the United States, and it is very fit for carrying out in clinical hospital. Medical Staff and health care team may combine effectively to treat some complex cases, especially personality disorder, complex trauma, mood disorders, impulse control disorders, eating disorders, adolescent problem and other issues. Hundreds peer review articles and dozens of books elaborate theory of mentalizing and Mentalization-based Treatment.

Representatives

Peter Fonagy, Ph.D., F.B.A., is Freud Memorial Professor of Psychoanalysis and Director of the Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology at University College London; Chief Executive of the Anna Freud Centre, London; and Consultant to the Child and Family Program at the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Baylor College of Medicine.

Anthony W. Bateman, MA FRC. Psych is a Visiting Professor in the Psychoanalysis Unit at University College London. He is a Consultant Psychiatrist and Psychotherapist and Honorary Senior Lecturer at University College and Royal Free Medical Schools, Barnet, Enfield, and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust, and St Ann's Hospital, London. He is also a Visiting Consultant at the Menninger Clinic, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Texas and a Clinical Tutor at Barnet, Enfield & Haringey Mental Health Care Trust.